Numerous wheelchairs have been developed for both residential and commercial use, including motorized wheelchairs. Some of these have provided limited vertical adjustability, and others have attempted to permit transfer of an occupant either onto or off of the wheelchair, such as by providing a removable seat. These prior structures, however, have proven to be less than desirable since most have not provided both a durable and simple structure while permitting vertical adjustability, nor have they provided a structure which can be conveniently manipulated to permit transfer of the occupant, such as when the seat is being transferred.
Further, particularly in medical facilities, transfer of patients is still accomplished primarily by using lift devices wherein a wheeled frame is provided with a vertically extendible upright post having a support arm projecting cantilevered from the upper end thereof, which arm has a slinglike seat suspended therefrom for supporting a patient. Such mechanisms do not function as wheelchairs, however, but solely as lifting and transfer devices. Further, such devices are frightening to the patient since the patient is supported solely by the suspended seat arrangement and does not have the comfort and security of being seated within a chair structure.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved wheelchair arrangement which can also function as a patient support and transfer apparatus, which arrangement is believed to represent a significant improvement over many of the wheelchairs and lifting devices which have been heretofore utilized.
More specifically, Applicant has developed an improved wheelchair which includes a pair of sidewardly-spaced vertically-extendible posts which support a pair of rearwardly-projecting cantilevered support arms adjacent the upper ends thereof, which arms in turn mount a detachable seat structure therebetween. This improved wheelchair, which is the subject of my aforementioned U.S. application Ser. No. 07/484,570 filed Feb. 23, 1990 now U.S. Pat. No. 5,112,076, has provided greatly increased capabilities which respect to the ability of the chair occupant to conveniently adjust the height of the seat depending upon the occupant's demands, together with the ability to maneuver the wheelchair in association with a bed or a vehicle to facilitate transfer of the seated occupant from or onto the wheelchair.
The present invention relates to further improvements in the wheelchair of the aforementioned application, which improvements provide even greater performance capabilities, particularly with respect to providing greater ability to transfer the seated occupant from the wheelchair onto a bed, a vehicle seat or the like, and vice versa, along with greater flexibility and capability of utilizing the wheelchair in conjunction with a standard toilet so as to not require transfer of the patient from the wheelchair when use of the toilet is desired.
The improved wheelchair arrangement of this invention can be utilized so as to function in a manner which corresponds to a conventional wheelchair, whereby an occupant can comfortably sit in and comfortably utilize the wheelchair, but which also provides greatly improved flexibility with respect to transporting and transferring of the occupant. This improved wheelchair is particularly desirable for use in medical facilities to improve the transportability and transferability of patients in a safe and secure manner while requiring minimal assistance from medical facility personnel, such as by permitting transfer of a patient while being assisted by only a single assistant. The wheelchair is also highly desirable for use in a residence or the like, particularly when provided with a driving motor so as to be self-propelled, to enable the occupant to control his/her own movements throughout the building, while at the same time enabling the occupant to have greatly improved flexibility with respect to functions which can be carried out, and also permitting the occupant to be readily transferred to or from the chair when assisted by another individual.